Preview: Lindsey Carr and Marco Mazzoni at Roq La Rue

Tonight, November 7, Roq La Rue in Seattle will open two solo shows by artists who share a passion for the natural world: Lindsey Carr and Marco Mazzoni. British painter Lindsey Carr’s gouache and watercolor works in “La Petite Singerie” (“The Little Monkey”) is a series of stately portraits of primates. Rendered realistically with a naturalist’s eye despite their anthropomorphism, the monkeys are painted regally on yellowed surfaces with an antique feel. The delicately ornamented works are presented in equally baroque wooden frames. Behind the folkloric aesthetic of Carr’s work is a conservationist message that laments the destruction of animals’ natural habitats.

Marco Mazzoni’s solo show “Naturama” presents new color pencil and graphite drawings that continue the artists’ exploration of femininity and nature. Drawn to the pre-Christian tradition of female healers in Europe, Mazzoni’s ouvre focuses on the mystical power of flora. His Moleskine drawings are a bit more whimsical than the dimly lit portraits (which, Mazzoni has said, he views as still lifes), with their playful arrangements of small species of animals. Take a look at some of the work in both shows below and see “Le Petite Singerie” and “Naturama” on view November 7 through 30.